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Jennifer Wayne, granddaughter of iconic movie actor John Wayne, will be crowned Queen Azalea LXVI at a ceremony at 3 p.m. April 10 at Riverfront Park in downtown Wilmington.

Wayne follows on the heels of Ericka Dunlap, last year's Azalea Festival queen, who was Miss America 2004 and was also on "The Amazing Race." Other past Azalea Festival queens have included Esther Williams, Shelley Fabares, Joan Van Ark, Kelly Ripa and Phylicia Rashad.

Wayne, also known as Jennifer Kuhle, is a star on the current season of CBS' "The Amazing Race," along with teammate Caroline Cutbirth. After finishing next-to-last in the first leg of the race, the country singers have improved their position. They finished third in the most recent leg, a trip through Botswana, where Wayne picked up a speeding ticket. The CBS show will not air April 7. The next episode will air April 14, the last day of the Azalea Festival.

Azalea Festival President Donna Cameron, who released the name of the queen at a news conference on Wednesday, said she and her son watched Wayne on "The Amazing Race" last Sunday.

Before "The Amazing Race," Wayne was best-known for performing in the trio Stealing Angels, a country band she formed with Cutbirth and Tayla Lynn. They united after being cast for a reality show based on their famous families. Lynn is the granddaughter of country music legend Loretta Lynn and Cutbirth is a descendant of Daniel Boone. The reality show was abandoned, but the trio played together for years. Their singles included "He Better Be Dead" and "Paper Heart." Wayne wrote nine of the 13 songs on Stealing Angels' album.

Wayne's newest project is Darlington Abbey, a trio she formed with Janell Wheeler and Josh Matheny. The band recently released its first song, "Giving Myself to That Man," on Soundcloud.com/DarlingtonAbbey.

Wayne was once a nationally ranked college tennis player. She played in college at the University of California, Santa Barbara. In her profile for "The Amazing Race," she lists winning the National Father Daughter Tennis Championship as her proudest accomplishment.

She once dated professional tennis player Bob Bryan and performed with the Bryan Brothers Band.

Wayne is not scheduled to sing or play tennis at the festival, so she might not bring her racquet or guitar. But, Ezzell said, it's not out of the question that she might sing.

<p>The Duke's granddaughter has been named the queen.</p><p>Jennifer Wayne, granddaughter of iconic movie actor John Wayne, will be crowned Queen Azalea LXVI at a ceremony at 3 p.m. April 10 at Riverfront Park in downtown Wilmington.</p><p>Wayne follows on the heels of Ericka Dunlap, last year's <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/entertainment10"><b>Azalea Festival</b></a> queen, who was Miss America 2004 and was also on "The Amazing Race." Other past Azalea Festival queens have included Esther Williams, Shelley Fabares, Joan Van Ark, Kelly Ripa and Phylicia Rashad.</p><p>Wayne, also known as Jennifer Kuhle, is a star on the current season of CBS' "The Amazing Race," along with teammate Caroline Cutbirth. After finishing next-to-last in the first leg of the race, the country singers have improved their position. They finished third in the most recent leg, a trip through Botswana, where Wayne picked up a speeding ticket. The CBS show will not air April 7. The next episode will air April 14, the last day of the Azalea Festival.</p><p>Azalea Festival President Donna Cameron, who released the name of the queen at a news conference on Wednesday, said she and her son watched Wayne on "The Amazing Race" last Sunday.</p><p>Before "The Amazing Race," Wayne was best-known for performing in the trio Stealing Angels, a country band she formed with Cutbirth and Tayla Lynn. They united after being cast for a reality show based on their famous families. Lynn is the granddaughter of country music legend Loretta Lynn and Cutbirth is a descendant of Daniel Boone. The reality show was abandoned, but the trio played together for years. Their singles included "He Better Be Dead" and "Paper Heart." Wayne wrote nine of the 13 songs on Stealing Angels' album. </p><p>Wayne's newest project is Darlington Abbey, a trio she formed with Janell Wheeler and Josh Matheny. The band recently released its first song, "Giving Myself to That Man," on Soundcloud.com/DarlingtonAbbey.</p><p>Wayne stands 5-foot-11, said Azalea Festival Queen's Coordinator Gloria Ezzell. Organizers don't traditionally measure the queens, so it's not known if she's the tallest queen ever. </p><p>Wayne was once a nationally ranked college tennis player. She played in college at the University of California, Santa Barbara. In her profile for "The Amazing Race," she lists winning the National Father Daughter Tennis Championship as her proudest accomplishment. </p><p>She once dated professional tennis player Bob Bryan and performed with the Bryan Brothers Band. </p><p>Wayne is not scheduled to sing or play tennis at the festival, so she might not bring her racquet or guitar. But, Ezzell said, it's not out of the question that she might sing.</p><p><a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic87"><b>Mike Voorheis</b></a>: 343-2205</p>